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[0:00] Amen. We're going to turn this evening to that chapter that we read previously in Ruth chapter 2. And I want us to look together at a conversation between two people, between Ruth, who is the subject of the book, of course, that's who the book is named after, and this man Boaz.

[0:22] This man Boaz. And we're going to read together from verse 11, but Boaz answered her. All that you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband has been fully told me, and how you have left your father and mother and your native land and came to a people that you did not know before.

[0:40] The Lord repay you for what you have done, and a full reward be given you by the Lord, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge. Then she said, I have found favor in your eyes, my Lord, for you have comforted me and spoken kindly to your servant, though I am not one of your servants.

[1:02] And at mealtime, Boaz said to her, verse 14, come here and eat some bread and dip your morsel in the wine. So she sat beside the reapers and he passed to her roasted grain and she ate until she was satisfied and she had some left over.

[1:21] The story of Ruth is, of course, a story of tragedy in the first instance.

[1:34] It's then a story of love in the second place. But above all, the story of Ruth is a story of faith. Faith in the woman who, though a Moabitess, came to trust and turned to the living and the true God as she became a citizen of Israel.

[1:57] Of course, we know how the story begins. It begins with a family, Elimelech, and whose wife was Naomi. And because of a famine in Israel, they left the country and went over east to Moab to where they thought there would be more food.

[2:11] And there, having settled in Moab, Elimelech died. And they had two sons and they had taken wives from Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth.

[2:24] Both of the sons tragically died also. We don't know how close these deaths were to one another. But this family very quickly came into experience of tragedy and sadness.

[2:37] And sometime later, Naomi decided to go back because she had heard that the family was famine was now over. She decided to go back to Bethlehem, where she had come from. And at first, Orpah and Ruth, her daughters-in-law, decided that they would go with her.

[2:50] And they accompanied her up until the moment that she was about to step over the border from Moab into Israel. And then there was a crisis. Because Orpah, having weighed up all the options and having considered very carefully the difference between what it was for her to go forward into a country that was completely unknown to her, a language and a people and a culture that she had not experienced before, and all the uncertainty that there was there, compared to the familiarity of the past, her own people, her own language, her own, everything that she knew and was familiar with back home.

[3:29] She decided that she couldn't go forward. She went back. Even though the desire was there, there was some kind of desire there.

[3:39] She loved her mother-in-law. And yet, when it came to the actual step in which she had to step over the threshold and become a citizen of a foreign country, she couldn't cope with that.

[3:51] And she went back. But Ruth, her crisis was entirely different. It was the opposite. And for her, when she saw Orpah making her own way back to the gods that she knew and the people that she knew and the culture she knew, the more she saw Orpah, her sister-in-law, moving back into her former life, the more she was determined that she couldn't go back.

[4:20] She absolutely had to go forward. Even although for her, going forward was just as difficult and contained just as much unknown as it did for Orpah.

[4:34] In fact, once she goes back and once she steps over the threshold, it's quite clear from the end of chapter 1 and chapter 2 how vulnerable she felt and how frail and weak and insecure that she felt.

[4:49] But there is one thing, however insecure she felt, there was one thing that was absolutely sure. She could not go back to her old life.

[5:01] And right now, I wonder how many people there are and they're at the same crisis. I wonder if there's anyone here this evening. And you are at that same point in your own life.

[5:13] Perhaps you are at the crossroads. And you've weighed up all the options. You know that there is only one living and true God.

[5:24] You know that his people is the place where he has invited you to and he is the one who has died for sinners. And he has sent an invitation to you tonight to come and to trust in him.

[5:37] And yet you know that the reality of that trust will involve you in entering into a different world. A world that you haven't known before with all its unknowns and all its uncertainties.

[5:52] And for you, you just, it's a crisis because you're familiar with your own life and there are all these things that you've held on to and that you've loved all this time up until now.

[6:04] And yet you know that God wants you into his kingdom. And for you to come has to be all or nothing. It has to be 100%.

[6:14] We have to live for Christ and for him alone. And perhaps you, like Ruth tonight, for you, you just can't go back. There might be a thousand voices calling you back and yet for some reason you simply know you can't go back.

[6:31] Because you know the reality of the gospel and you can feel the power of the gospel. And even although, even although you take that step of faith, and perhaps there are some of you here this evening who have taken that step of faith.

[6:46] And you feel like Ruth, that there is a vulnerability. You feel that you're kind of looking all around you to see, what have I done? And what's ahead of me? And what does the future hold for me?

[6:57] And how will these people receive me? And how will I live? And what will my life be like? It's no easy thing for a person once they take the step of faith. You know, there's this idea.

[7:08] Some people have the idea. But once you decide for Christ, once you come to Christ, that everything is going to be clear. Or everything is going to feel good. And everything is going to feel secure. And you're going to have a sudden sense of peace and joy.

[7:22] Well, that doesn't always happen to everyone. For some people, there's a feeling of really being vulnerable. And really wondering what you've done. And whether you really have come to faith. And whether it's been real or not.

[7:34] And all these questions come flooding into our minds. And of course, the devil has a field day. And he'll try and tell you that you haven't. He'll try and tell you that your place is back home. But that's one thing that you know you can't do.

[7:46] You can't go back. Because the Bible tells you that to go back is to go back to a life of death and punishment. And a life where you know that once you come to the end of it, you die without Christ.

[7:59] And you know that that very truth alone is enough to say, Well, I can't. I've got to go forward. So faith from this story is quite clear. Faith weighs up the options.

[8:12] Both of these women, they weighed up the options. For them, it was a process of stopping and thinking and comparing the life that they once had with the life that they now could have.

[8:25] Faith is also a refusal to go back to your old life. But also, faith is a step forward. A step towards the Lord Jesus Christ.

[8:35] That step that Levi took when Jesus met with him. And he simply said, Follow me. And Levi got up. And he left his tax collector's booth and followed Christ.

[8:46] That's the step of faith. The step that Zacchaeus took. When Jesus looked up in the tree and he said, Zacchaeus, come down. For I must abide at your house today. And the first step that Zacchaeus went, That's that climbing down from that tree.

[9:00] Somewhere between the tree and the ground, He became a changed man. He became a new creation. Born again. That's the step of faith. And that's the step that the Lord requires and asks and invites us to take towards himself.

[9:16] Somebody said once, and I think I've said this before. Somebody said once that there is one obstacle, There are rather two obstacles to repentance. And one is familiarity with the past.

[9:28] And the other one is fear of the unknown. And I'm sure you all know what that means. Familiarity with the past. There's something within us that clings to what we've always had in the past. And we find it difficult to let go.

[9:41] And there's a fear of the unknown. Because to go into, to have faith in the Lord Jesus means a life of, Well, whatever you're going to do is unknown. And can you take the chance tonight of facing the rest of your life without Christ?

[9:55] Is that the safe option? Of course it isn't. There's a sense in which you just have no option. I don't understand how people can weigh up all these options and they can decide, Well, I don't need Christ.

[10:06] Of course you do. It's the one thing we do need, isn't it? The Lord Jesus Christ. And perhaps there's someone here this evening. And you feel very much like Ruth, having taken that step of faith.

[10:19] And you're in the new country. And you've expected to feel something. Something good and positive. And something that's joyful. And you don't feel it at first.

[10:30] Well, you stop. Stop and listen. Listen to what Ruth I discovered. Because despite all the insecurity and all the uncertainty that there was.

[10:40] And all the fear there was. By the end of that very first day, she went out in weakness and she came back in strength. She went out in emptiness and she came back full.

[10:54] She came out in fear and she came back confident. What was it that changed Ruth on that very first day? What was it that brought about such a change?

[11:04] Well, it was this conversation. One conversation that she had with Boaz, who was the owner of the field. You'll know, of course, that there was only one option for these two women.

[11:16] They were poor. They had no money. They were penniless. They were probably propertyless as well. And all they could do was to go and glean. Because there was a law of gleaning.

[11:29] In which God had commanded those who owned fields at harvest time. Not to harvest every single grain. But to leave the grain at the edges. For those who were poor to be able to pick up.

[11:42] And he ordered them not to double harvest their fields. To leave some in order deliberately for those who were poor to pick up. So that they wouldn't die of starvation.

[11:52] And they knew that there was this law. So they went out to make use of the law. And it happened to be by God's providence and his coincidence. Having guided her.

[12:04] Unbeknown to her. She was being guided by the Lord. And that's the thing about guidance. We don't know how the Lord is guiding us from day to day. We talk about guidance.

[12:15] And we expect it to happen in a certain way. But the fact is. That the way that God really guides his people. They don't even know it. They're not aware of it. But the fact is he does.

[12:26] And it's only in hindsight. That we're able to see how God has guided us. So perfectly by his own wisdom. And by his providence. It's marvelous how we're able to see that. Ruth had no idea.

[12:37] She was being guided by the Lord into this particular field. But she was. And that's God's promise to everyone. Who trusts in him. God is the God of provision.

[12:48] He provides and he guides. His people from one day to the next. But in any case. She found. Or rather Boaz found her. And what she discovered was.

[13:01] That contrary to being her. Her being a stranger. Or an unknown. The fact is. That she wasn't an unknown. They knew all about. And particularly Boaz knew everything about her.

[13:14] And that comes out in the conversation that she had with him. That everything that she had done. Had become known to him. He knew all about her. And he was able to go to her with exactly the right words.

[13:28] And exactly the right thing. Which strengthened her. And it gave her the confidence that she needed. To see her through the day.

[13:39] And to go home to her mother-in-law. Knowing that not only had she been met with kindness. But that God himself. Had guided her. And had given her. A new life.

[13:50] So what was it about this conversation then? And particularly. What is it about this conversation. That helps us as we prepare. For the Lord's table tomorrow. Well I want us to. See how this conversation does.

[14:02] Because there's something that's so similar. To the relationship that we as God's people. Have with the Lord. About this conversation. It can't be coincidence. I don't believe it's coincidence at all.

[14:14] Some people don't. They're very much afraid of reading too much. Well of course we're afraid of reading too much. Into the scriptures. And yet there are times in the scriptures. Where there are things that are so similar.

[14:27] They strike us. As being. As describing. And I believe that that's what this conversation does. It describes to us. Our relationship with the Lord.

[14:39] And it also describes. In a peculiar way. The basis. As to how we are going to sit. At the Lord's table. Tomorrow. First of all. What does it tell us? It tells us first of all.

[14:49] That we are going to sit. At the table. By God's grace. By God's grace. Have you ever noticed? I'm sure you have.

[14:59] In fact. I believe that every Christian. Is aware of this at some point in their lives. Of the surprise element that there is.

[15:10] In grace. And that's what we find. In verse 10. She fell on her face. Bowing to the ground. And she said to Boaz. Why?

[15:21] Have I found favor. In your eyes. She just. Found it difficult to believe. I mean. After all. That's just.

[15:31] Wasn't how people. Treated one another. Particularly. Strangers. And foreigners. For. From another country. We think. We have a problem with racism. And long ago.

[15:42] They treated. People. Of a different race. Very differently. From the kind of. From the kind of benevolence. That there is today. Emphasized quite rightly. In our society. In those days.

[15:53] You simply weren't treated. As unequal. And you weren't treated. With a great deal of kindness. Either. Normally. If you were a foreigner. And this. Boaz came. And instead of.

[16:04] Throwing her out of the field. Which he had every. Legal right to do. And instead of. Just tolerating her. He actually showed. Personal interest. In her.

[16:15] To the point. Where she couldn't believe. Why she had. And she just didn't. Understand. Why. He had shown. Such care. And affection. For her.

[16:27] And there's this question. Why? And there's no answer. To that. Why? Why has God loved. You and I. So much. To give his only son.

[16:38] Into the world. His only begotten son. Into the world. And why is it. That. That you and I. Have been saved. Is it that we have been. Any better. That have we proved.

[16:48] Ourselves any more. Than anyone else. To the Lord. What was it in us. That God saw. That he should have taken us. Into his kingdom. Remember the story. Of the good shepherd.

[16:59] The shepherd. That. That left the 99. In the wilderness. The other sheep. In the wilderness. And went. Off after. That was you and I. Wasn't it? We were the prodigal sons. We are the ones.

[17:09] That foolishly took. What belonged to the father. And went and squandered. Half our lives. On riotous living. Some of us. And we can remember. A day in our lives. Where we. We were rebels.

[17:20] Against God. We had no time. For the Lord. We didn't want. We didn't want the thought of God. In anything. In our hearts. We didn't want to go to church. We didn't want to listen to the Bible. And yet. Here we are tonight.

[17:31] Praising. And we know. That wasn't our own doing. It was God. Who worked in us. And somehow or other. Guiding us. And retrieving us. And rescuing us.

[17:42] From the power. And from the clutches. Of sin. And darkness. And bringing us. Into his kingdom. Why did he do that? I don't know. His grace.

[17:54] His inexplicable grace. With which he sent his son. Into the world. And drew us. Back. To himself. Why have I found favor.

[18:06] In your eyes. In other words. But there's something even more. Intriguing about this story. Because. It wasn't just that this woman. Was a foreigner. Or a stranger. She wasn't a normal stranger.

[18:17] She was. A Moabite. As you ever wonder. Reading this chapter. Why it is that. Ruth is referred to. Time and time again. As. The Moabite. The Moabite. The Moabite.

[18:28] Why was that? Because. She wasn't just. A foreigner. Or a stranger. Her. Nation. Was banned. From Israel. Altogether.

[18:38] Deuteronomy. Chapter 23 and 3. This is what God says. No Ammonite. Nor Moabite. May enter the assembly. Of the Lord. Even to the 10th generation.

[18:49] None of them. May enter the assembly. Of the Lord. Forever. That was. That's a pretty clear. Prohibition. And a ban. Issued by the Lord. That no Moabite. Should ever come.

[19:00] To Israel. And be accepted. And that was because. Of course. That the lifestyle. And the religion. And the practice. Of the Moabites. Were so opposed. To what God required.

[19:10] They were so abhorrent. To God. That God had put. There was no way. They would ever want. To be part of Israel. In the first place. But God made it clear. That they were prohibited.

[19:21] From being part. Of Israel. In short. They were enemies. Of God. Adversaries. And opponents. And enemies. Of God. But here is a Moabite. And she is right.

[19:31] Amongst. God's people. How is that? There is a huge paradox. Not only legally. Would Boaz. Have had every right. To throw Ruth.

[19:41] Off his field. But. Religiously. Or spiritually. The leaders of Israel. Would have every right. To throw her out. Of the country. According to the command.

[19:52] Of God. And yet. Here she is. She has been led. By God. Boaz. Recognizes. That it is God. Who has led her. Who can God. Go against himself. How could God.

[20:02] Act. Against his own command. God said. No more about it. No more about it. And here he is. He is guiding Ruth. To come. And trust in him. Isn't that.

[20:13] A contradiction. Isn't that. A. What we call. A paradox. Something that we don't expect. The opposite. To what we expect.

[20:24] Yes. Grace. Is. A paradox. That's what grace is. It does things that we. It does the opposite.

[20:35] To what. We expect. It does the opposite. To what we deserve. And here is God. And he is overriding. His own command. Somehow.

[20:45] Finding a way. That even although. God himself. Has put this. Prohibition. On Moabites. Ever coming into Israel. He himself. Has opened up a way. For one of them. To come in. It's like the gospel.

[20:58] Isn't it. The soul. That sins. It shall die. You and I. Are sinners. The wages. Of sin. Is death. You and I. Are sinners. We deserve. To die.

[21:08] That's what the Bible. Says. And yet. We're alive. We're praising God. And we're doing so. Because we believe. And are confident. That we're saved people. And that when we die. We'll go to be with the Lord.

[21:18] How is that? It goes against. His own. Principle. The soul. That sins. It shall die. Yet God. Has somehow. Overridden. That principle. He has. Opened a door.

[21:29] To bring us. Into his kingdom. And to bring us. To see himself. And to. For us to love him. And rejoice in him. And live for him. Tonight. And to remember his death. On the cross. And that's precisely.

[21:40] The door that's been opened. The death of Jesus. On the cross. That's the way. Because. If it hadn't been. For the death. Of Jesus. There cannot be. Any way. For God.

[21:50] To override. His own commands. God doesn't. Go against himself. But the only way. That God could. Could bring us in. The only way.

[22:01] That God would bring. Ruth in. And that you and I. As sinners. Strangers. From the commonwealth. Of Israel. That's what Paul talks. Of strangers. From God's fellowship. How then.

[22:12] Have we come in. Because God. Himself. In the person. Of Jesus Christ. Has become sin. For us. He's become a sin. Offering for us. And he offered himself. He went. To death itself.

[22:23] And suffered. The penalty. The pain. And the penalty. Of sin. For us. And instead of us. And as a representative. So that. In order to open the door. So that we could come in. So that we could be drawn.

[22:35] Into fellowship. And new life. In him. You see. We have a picture here. Of the gospel. The goodness. And the kindness. And the greatness. Of the grace. Of God. So that's the first thing.

[22:47] We sit at the Lord's table. By his grace. We also sit at the Lord's table. By faith. If you. If you look at Boaz's answer. Why have I found favor in your eyes?

[22:59] That's what Ruth says. But Boaz said to her. He said to her several things. All that you have done. For your mother-in-law. Since the death of your husband. Has been fully told me. And how you left your father and mother.

[23:09] And your native land. And came to a people. That you did not know before. But Boaz. Also recognized. That it wasn't just love for her mother-in-law. There was something deeper than that.

[23:20] There was a recognition in Ruth. That God was the Lord. And once you recognize that. And once you really. Take that step of faith.

[23:31] That accepts the Lord. Then you can't live any other way. There's simply no other alternative. And he knew that. And then he said. Verse 12. Now the Lord repay you.

[23:41] For what you have done. And a full reward be given you. By the Lord. The God of Israel. Under whose wings. You have come. To take refuge. Now this is not. Suggesting that somehow.

[23:53] She earned her own salvation. And God was somehow. Repaying her. Or rewarding her. In the sense that. You reward somebody. Who sat and examined. Who's got full marks. That's not the way it is at all.

[24:04] There's often that. The Bible talks about. God's gift. As his reward. It's not that we've earned his reward. But that God has placed. That faith within us. That desire.

[24:16] And that longing in us. That sense of hunger. That can only be satisfied. By him. But then as we've come to him. In that hunger. God has fed us. And given us.

[24:27] Himself. As a reward. For that hunger. It's like the woman. Who came to. To Jesus. With the issue of blood. What did Jesus say? He said. Your faith. Has saved you.

[24:38] Your faith. Has saved you. And what is faith? Faith is what looks. And trusts. And depends. Upon Jesus. Alone. Alone. Alone. As our saviour.

[24:49] Faith is. As we come to him tonight. And we say. There is no other way. But Jesus Christ. As the son of God. Made man for me. And having died.

[24:59] For me. At Calvary. And having. Been buried. For me. And risen. Again. On the third day. Faith is. Faith is. What brings us to him. And accepts him.

[25:11] As. My saviour. And my lord. With a knowledge. That I need him. And there is no other way. Of being cleansed. And washed. From my sins. The consciousness.

[25:21] Of. Of the awfulness. Of my sin. And how much. I need him. And how there is no. Simply no. Other way. So we are saved. We sit at the lord's table. By faith.

[25:32] We are saved. By faith. And it is a faith. That has led us. To do what he has commanded us. To do. And to remember his death. As the basis. For our. The payment.

[25:43] For our sins. So the third thing. Then tonight. Is we sit at the lord's table. To state. To declare. To tell. What.

[25:54] God. Has done. For us. Look at verse 13. Then she said. I have found favor. In your eyes. My lord. For you. Have comforted me.

[26:05] And spoken kindly. To your servant. Though I am not one. Of your servants. What did she say? She says three things. First of all. She says.

[26:15] How glad. She's rejoicing. She's. She's. Thrilled. Of course. She is. Because. She might have expected.

[26:28] Hostility. From Boaz. That's what. She might have. Humanly expected. But that wasn't. What happened at all. Instead of hostility. There was.

[26:38] Downright. Kindness. It appeared that. Boaz was bending over. Backwards for her. It appeared. He was just pulling out. All the stops. Arranging things for her. Arrange.

[26:49] Making sure that the men. Wouldn't molest her. In any way. And making sure. That there was enough. For her to glean. In the fields. Providing for her. In every way. Such kindness.

[27:01] And she wants to tell. She wants to say. She wants to. To. To openly declare. His kindness. To her. But then. She also wants to tell.

[27:12] How. He has particularly. Spoken. To her heart. I have found. Favor in your eyes. My lord. For you have comforted. Me. It wasn't that.

[27:23] She was just relieved. From the stress. Of perhaps. Not knowing. Where her next meal. Was going to come from. But it wasn't. It was more than that. There was a deep. Seated. Soul.

[27:33] Peace. Within her. That knew. That at last. She had taken. The right step. At first. She didn't even know. Where she was. She didn't know. What to do. Which way to turn.

[27:44] She didn't know. What was going to face her. From one moment. To the next. And now. She feels. A sense of peace. In her heart. And it's all been brought about. Because she's listened. To the words.

[27:55] Of her redeemer. And if you're here tonight. And you're. And you're. You feel that. Vulnerability. That sense of vulnerability. You believe.

[28:06] You've taken that step of faith. But you're not even sure. That you have. Sometimes. You know. We need to stop. Looking at ourselves. And you need to listen. To what Jesus is saying to us. Listen to how Jesus.

[28:18] Describes us. Instead of trying to. Work ourselves out. By ourselves. If you know what I mean. We're always. Trying to analyze ourselves. And it can be a fatal mistake.

[28:29] In the life of the Christian. To start. Trying to. To dissect ourselves. Listen to what Jesus. Says. About us. The Bible tells us tonight.

[28:40] That we are. In Christ. That means that we are. Attached to him. That we are. United to him. It tells us that we are. Children of God. Behold. What manner of love.

[28:51] The father has. Bestowed upon us. That we are. Children of God. And so we are. Children. Of God. Are we. Conscious tonight. Of that.

[29:01] That's a relationship. With the father. Are we so conscious. That we are. Thrilled. In that relationship. Thrilled. To be his children. What did Jesus. Tell. Say to his disciples.

[29:12] I have called you friends. Are you conscious tonight. That you are a friend. You may not feel. That you are a friend. Of Jesus. You may not feel. Good enough. To be a friend. Of Jesus.

[29:22] The disciples. Weren't good enough. To be friends. Of Jesus. We believe. We are friends. Of Jesus. Because he has said. I have called you friends. It's not presumption.

[29:34] Of you. To call yourself. A friend. It's me. That's saying it. And the question is. Do you accept that? You know. Sometimes.

[29:45] It's dishonoring. To God. When we. When we emphasize. Our own unworthiness. So much. That we fail. To take hold. Of what he says.

[29:56] About us. That's dishonoring. To God. It's almost as if. Well you're saying. Well that doesn't matter. What matters is. My feelings. No. Put them away. Listen to God.

[30:07] Listen to the Lord. Behold. What manner of love. What kind of love. The father has bestowed upon us. That we are called. Children of God. Start being a child of God.

[30:19] Start living like a child of God. Start speaking like a child of God. Start speaking like a friend of Jesus. As someone. Who accepts.

[30:30] What God says. About you. That's what Ruth did. And that's what made the difference. That. That Boaz came. And he told her. How much.

[30:41] He spoke so gently. And so assuringly. Reassuringly to her. So that by the end of the conversation. She knew perfectly well. She knew more than ever before.

[30:51] That she was in the right place. And that her life was secure. Whatever was. Whatever lay ahead of her. And she was prepared to face anything at all. Dark or bright. And she knew.

[31:02] That she was. In the right place. She wanted to say then. How deeply. How. What he had done. For her. And how he had comforted her.

[31:13] And how he had spoken kindly to her. How he had spoken to her heart. The same as what we want to say. By sitting. At the Lord's table. But we sit. But there's something. That our Redeemer.

[31:25] Has done for us. That we're going to. Make known tomorrow. That wasn't true of Boaz. Our Redeemer. Has given his life.

[31:37] For us. That he has paid. The penalty. And the price of our sin. By going to the cross. And laying down. His own life. And we're going to.

[31:48] Once again. We're going to turn our eyes. God willing. Tomorrow. To that place of horror. And darkness. And shame. The place where. The Lord Jesus Christ.

[31:58] Became our substitute. And hung. And was crucified. For us. Displaying. God's unique. Love.

[32:10] Towards us. As his people. And we're going to do that. To make known. That we love him. Because he first. Loved us. And because we are there. In obedience.

[32:22] To him. The last thing. I want us to say. The time has gone. Is that we sit. At the Lord's table. Fourthly. By his. Personal. Invitation. At mealtime.

[32:33] Verse 14. Boaz said to her. Come here. And eat. Some bread. And dip your morsel. In the wine.

[32:45] He was personally. As the owner. And the Lord. Of the field. Saying to her. You come here. You are here. At my invitation.

[32:56] At my request. My command. My command. And it's the same. With us tomorrow. We are there. At the command. And the invitation.

[33:07] Of our redeemer. When he says. Take. Eat. This is my body. Which has been broken. For you. Do this. In remembrance.

[33:19] Of me. There were three things. That Boaz said. I want to leave them with you. This evening. For your encouragement. I hope. This evening. There are three things.

[33:32] I think we can break up. This conversation into. First of all. He said to her. Stay where you are. Drink from the right well.

[33:44] Eat the right food. Food. And thirdly. Keep the right company. And these are three things. That I believe. That Jesus says. To his people.

[33:55] This evening. Stay with me. He says. Stay where you are. He tells us. To eat. The right things. To make sure. That we feed.

[34:05] On the Bible. To make sure. That we regularly. Come for strengthening. And nourishment. To his word. And that we. And likewise. That we. That we drink. The right nourishment.

[34:15] From him as well. But that we. Stay. In the right company. The fellowship. Of his people. And by sitting. At the Lord's table. We are acknowledging.

[34:26] Those three things. That we are acknowledging. His lordship. His field. His kingdom. We are drinking. From the right well.

[34:36] And eating. From the right food. And we are staying. And we are keeping. The right company. The company. Of his own. Believing. Repentant.

[34:49] Worshipping. People. Let's pray together. Our father in heaven. We give thanks. For our time together. And we pray. That you will bless. Your word to us.

[35:00] We pray. That you will prepare. Our hearts. To sit at the table. We pray. That you will speak. Especially. This evening. To anyone. Who feels. Vulnerable. And who's. Who is. At that crisis.

[35:11] That we were speaking. About this evening. The crisis. Where Ruth. Took that step. Of faith. To enter into. The land. That became hers. And the land.

[35:22] In which she was. To discover. Day after day. The lord's provision. And the lord's goodness. To us. We pray. That you will be. An encouragement. To those. Who are on that. Threshold. Today. And those. Who have crossed it.

[35:33] But who are still. Perhaps feeling. That sense of fear. And fragility. We pray. That you will speak. To them. Speak to them. As Boaz. Spoke to Ruth. Speak to them.

[35:43] As Jesus. Speaks to his people. For we ask in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Thank you.